


We're Private Detectives... Kind Of

by doitsushine92



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Historical, Fairies, Fantasy, Implied Future OT3, M/M, mentions of abuse, this is a spur of the moment thing, use of the word slut once
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-27
Updated: 2017-12-27
Packaged: 2019-02-22 07:53:44
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,686
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13162587
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/doitsushine92/pseuds/doitsushine92
Summary: “This was supposed to be aneasyjob.”~Junhui and Minghao are hired to rescue Chan from the hands of a baron. It doesn't go exactly to plan.





	We're Private Detectives... Kind Of

**Author's Note:**

> two fanfics in less than a week?? both seventeen??? outrageous.
> 
> inspired by the movie maleficent and completely self indulgent.

“This was supposed to be an _easy_ job.”

Junhui ignores Minghao. He’s mindful of every step forward and sideways he takes; hyperaware of all the guards around them and the putrid smell of the hallways. Minghao is still grumbling to his right, snarling every once in a while and leaving Junhui to assume some if not all of the guards were being less than kind to him.

He is right about one thing, however. This truly was supposed to be an easy job, at least according to Seungcheol and his crew. In and out, nothing out of the ordinary: find the baron’s hidden lair, get in, rescue Mrs. Lee’s son and get out. If by chance some gold found its way to their pockets, well, no one had to know.

What neither of them had been counting on was the fact that the baron was clearly expecting _someone_ to go looking for Lee Chan and was prepared for it. Junhui fears they underestimated the old man.

Upon their arrival at the mansion, they were surrounded by guards, all armed with either swords or spears and way too many of them had iron shackles at hand. The fear that clutched at Junhui’s heart like an ice fist had little to do with Junhui himself and a lot to do with Minghao and what they might do to him. Minghao is human after all and if Junhui were captured and tied down, restricted from his power, Minghao would have no chance at getting away.

As it turns out, Minghao didn’t see it that way. He tapped Junhui’s arm twice, a silent signal for him to change him into something useful. Junhui didn’t think twice about it and with a flick of his wrist Minghao was no longer his tall skinny self but rather a lion. They put up a good fight the two of them together for a while, but eventually Minghao was taken down and Junhui subdued.

The iron burned Junhui’s skin everywhere it could reach. At least the guards simply bound his hands, aware they were the focus point of Junhui’s magic. One of the guards, an older man with a white beard and a pot belly, made the harsh request to turn Minghao back. Junhui knew that any trick would result in their deaths; he snapped a finger and Minghao immediately shouted at him whether he was stupid or what. The guards laughed, to which Minghao landed a few kicks on them before they had him bound too.

And that is how they found themselves blindfolded and shackled, led down endless tunnels in the baron’s home to their most certain demise. Junhui doesn’t even have the heart to think about Lee Chan at the moment, his thoughts occupied with an endless loop of _this is my fault, this is all my fault, Minghao will die and it’s my fault._

“I can hear you thinking,” Minghao tells him. “Stop it.”

Junhui flushes red for no reason. Minghao knows him better than he knows himself, of course he would know what’s going through his head the moment. A guard pushes Junhui and the fairy stumbles over his feet, landing on his knees. Minghao protests when he realizes the way they’re mistreating his sire, only to be silenced abruptly and Junhui hears him hit the ground with a thud too.

Before either of them can voice their opinion on their terrible treatment to guests, someone clears their throat. That someone’s first mistake is to order the guards to take the blindfolds off them, followed by the shackles.

Junhui takes stock of his surroundings, notes the five guards surrounding him, the guard with a sword pointed at Minghao’s neck and the baron sitting on what Junhui assumes is a throne. The whole room they’re in looks like a poor attempt at a King’s hall: there’s gold everywhere, and the walls are pristine white, but it’s too much and it comes off as tacky rather than regal. Junhui keeps those thoughts to himself though.

As the baron speaks about how disappointed he is they were captured so easily, Junhui contemplates the possible course of action. He thinks he can get the guards to drop the swords with a heat spell, then maybe point one of those babies at the baron and demand they’re taken to wherever he’s keeping Lee Chan. Sounds like a plan.

“… and of course Mrs. Lee sent someone, it is her son anyway, but to be honest that little slut is much better here with me than following after his father-“

Junhui doesn’t want to hear another word. The guards give pained cries when Junhui charms the swords to glow bright red and burn their skin. Minghao rolls out of the way when the sword above him nearly nicks his skin, but other than the scathing look he sends Junhui’s way he doesn’t seem unharmed. The next second Junhui ties the guards up with a quick wave of his fingers, leaving just them and the baron free.

Minghao catches up quickly. He grabs a sword from the ground and aims it at the baron’s throat, whose eyes have gone wide and his face is red. Junhui steps forward, brushing Minghao’s waist briefly before his attention is on the livid baron.

“What is the meaning of this?!” the baron spits out. He’s old and reeks of beer and sweat; Junhui can smell him from where he’s standing. He’s also very fat and has a sauce stain on his shirt. He’s the picture perfect of the people Junhui hates and it makes him scowl. Not that he has anything against fat people; he has everything against rich people, and unfortunately they all seem to be the same weight.

“Well obviously we’re here to rescue Lee Chan,” Minghao says, rolling his eyes as if it’s obvious. Junhui guesses it should be. “Or did you think we’d surrender that easily?”

“Take us to where he is and we’ll let you live,” Junhui offers. He’s being rather generous, if he may say so himself. He should slice the man’s throat and get on with life. The baron takes too long to make his decision, but Minghao simply presses the tip of the sword to his throat and the man blabbers about how there’s no need to get violent.

Junhui allows the baron to rise from his seat and lead them out of the hall. Without their sight restricted, Junhui can see there are actually windows in the damn place. They don’t seem too hard to open. Junhui hopes they’re not or else their escape plan is down the drain.

The baron doesn’t stop walking until they reach the darkest hallway, where there are no windows or decorations. At the end of the hall there’s a door seemingly made out of iron. Of course it is; if Junhui goes in there, he’s screwed. Minghao knows that, Junhui knows that and judging by the pleased smirk on the baron’s face, he knows that too.

“Well?” Minghao prompts. The baron has stopped in front of the door and hasn’t moved a muscle to open it. But at the insistent prod of the sword tip pressing against his back, he retrieves a set of keys from his trousers and unlocks the door.

Junhui stays outside of the room, though he peers in curiously. He’s careful not to let an inch of his being graze the area, doesn’t wish to risk his powers faltering and for the guards to be suddenly free. He catches a glimpse of a cell and hears the distinct sound of shackles sliding across the ground, but not much other than that. He does hear Minghao curse and feels their bond tighten with something akin to disgust and pity. Junhui isn’t sure he wants to know.

Not a minute later Minghao is coming back out, the baron out of sight and instead he’s dragging a young boy behind him. Lee Chan looks almost exactly like Mrs. Lee narrated to Mingyu while doing his sketch, except he’s now skinnier than he used to and his hair is longer, falling over his eyes. That and the ugly purple bruise on his cheek.

“You’re Chan?” Junhui asks for confirmation. Chan nods, not meeting his eyes. Minghao has the sword tucked into his belt, probably waiting to run into another guard to steal their case. Junhui knows because he knows Minghao. “I’m Junhui and this is Minghao. Your mother sent us here to save you.”

“Introductions can wait, Jun,” Minghao reminds him. “We should get out of here now.”

“Right,” Jun agrees, taking Chan’s wrist lightly and tugging him forward. His grip is light enough so if Chan wishes to get away he could. He doesn’t.

They jog back to the main hall where there are windows big enough to fit through. After a few failed attempts to open those, Minghao grabs a bronze jar and throws it towards the nearest window. The glass shatters and rains to the ground. Minghao goes first, turning around as soon as his feet hit the ground to extend his arms. Junhui helps Chan climb through and when he’s safely on the other side, follows him.

There isn’t much time to think about a plan. Junhui snaps his fingers and Minghao turns into a horse in a mist of golden powder. He whines, the clear message of ‘a little warning next time’ flying over Junhui’s head while he helps Chan mount him. They’re off the baron’s property in no time.

-

It becomes night time before they can reach the village. It’s Chan’s idea to stop for the night so they can rest, especially Minghao. Junhui agrees, if only because he can feel Minghao’s exhaustion through their bond. They set up camp near a little trickle of water, Minghao taking off to hunt for food while Junhui charms a few leaves and flowers to make beds for them. A naiad curiously inquires about their presence and then proceeds to offer them some water from her stream, assuring them it’s clean and perfectly healthy.

Chan can’t stop staring at her with something short of awed; he’s obviously never seen a naiad before and she bows, giggling quietly to herself as she takes her leave. Junhui conjures a jar of honey to give her the next time she makes herself known.

Minghao returns with a few rabbits and three fish. Junhui doesn’t know how he got the fish and doesn’t wish to ask. They burn a fire to roast their dinner and settle down around the flames to eat.

It is halfway through his fish that Chan speaks up for the first time since they rescued him.

“Who are you?”

“Well, like I said before, I’m Wen Junhui,” the fairy waves. “And this is my faithful servant Xu Minghao. We were hired by your mother to get you back from the baron.”

“I’m not your servant,” Minghao grumbles around his rabbit. It’s a little burnt, just the way he likes it. “I prefer the term sidekick.”

“What does that even mean?”

“I don’t know, but I like it.”

“And what about the whole…” Chan trails off, waving a hand in the air as an explanation. Junhui smiles kindly, understanding what he’s referring to.

“I’m a fairy. Minghao is human but lets me use him.”

Minghao makes a face at that. “That sounded wrong.”

“It’s not a lie,” Junhui points out. Minghao glares at him, but Junhui still sees the blush spreading on his cheeks. To Chan’s benefit, Junhui elaborates, “Minghao and I have a binding contract. In exchange for food, shelter and liberty, Minghao is at my service until I set him free. It’s not as harsh as it sounds, I promise.”

“I get to sleep on a comfy bed, have three meals a day and wander around the village and nearest cities anytime I want,” Minghao sums up. “It’s a pretty good deal.”

“What exactly is it that you do, then?” Chan asks Junhui. “Are you bounty hunters or something of the likes?”

“We’re… private detectives,” Minghao answers for him. “I guess.”

Chan seems satisfied by the vague response, enough to stay quiet while he eats the remaining of his dinner. Junhui and Minghao share an amused smile, eating away too. Chan is yawning and smacking his lips not too long after, clearly exhausted. Junhui can feel the adrenaline wearing off and his body sagging, more than ready to go to sleep.

Minghao rearranges the beds Junhui fixed for them earlier so they’re pushed together, and the two let Chan sleep in the middle. Chan doesn’t protest much when he’s led by the hand to lie down, mostly because he’s already got one foot in dreamland. He’s asleep the moment his head hits the ground.

Minghao curls up behind his back, sleepily telling Junhui to turn him into a wolf for warmth. Junhui knows it’s not just to keep his body temperature intact but also so he can protect them easier if danger comes their way and his heart squeezes at the thought. After doing as he’s asked, Junhui takes up the remaining space on the flower bed and curls a protective arm around Chan.

-

They arrive to the village before noon. Mrs. Lee is waiting right at the entrance, Soonyoung a few meters behind her. Chan gets off the horse the instant he sees his mother and runs towards her, his hair flapping in the wind. Junhui also gets off Minghao and changes him back, patting his back as a silent thank you.

Soonyoung has a terrible cold and his throat is too sore to talk, but he smiles at them in greeting and passes the pouch with their payment. It’s a little heavier than they’re used to but Mrs. Lee is a rich widow with nothing to lose but her son. He also slips a piece of paper into Junhui’s shirt pocket with a secretive smile and his index finger held up to his mouth. With that he waves goodbye, hands in his pockets and attempting to weasel a tune that comes out scratchy and off key.

Before they can leave too, Chan grabs Minghao’s sleeve and stops them. He wears a shy smile when he thanks them for their help.

“It was our pleasure,” Junhui tells him, ruffling his hair. “Now take care of yourself and your mom, alright?”

“I will,” Chan swears, determined. In a much softer voice, he adds, “Will I see you again?”

This time it’s Minghao who answers him. “If you want, yes.”

“I want,” Chan admits. Junhui smiles sweetly, reassuring him they will. The younger boys smiles back, beaming, and only turns away because his mother is beckoning him over with a knowing look on her face.

That night, Junhui remembers belatedly the paper Soonyoung gave them. He unfolds the fabric carefully, struggling to understand what is clearly Jihoon’s chicken scratch.

_I’m not sure what I saw but I’m sure it has to do with your most recent job. I think it’s important, though that might just be Mingyu talking through me._

Junhui is confused but leaves it be, changing into something more comfortable for bed. Minghao asks what’s got him frowning so, which Junhui didn’t even realize he was doing.

“Jihoon sent us a very cryptic message and I don’t think I want to know what he meant,” Junhui admits, crawling closer to the other male. Their bed is just big enough for them to sleep on separate sides, although they seldom do. Minghao says it’s warmer like that, Junhui knows he likes to cuddle. He shows the paper to Minghao once he’s comfortable – lying halfway across Minghao’s lap and taking up as much space as possible.

“It probably means Chan really is destined to see us again,” Minghao says and Junhui is reminded that he has seer’s blood in his vein. “Fate is funny like that.”

“I hope you’re right,” Junhui tells him around a yawn. He’s practically asleep when he says, “He’s really cute.”

Minghao threads fingers through Junhui’s hair, smiling at the pleased sound he makes in his sleep. “He is.”


End file.
